


Present Imperfect

by BlancaPowell



Category: PlayChoices, The Freshman Series (Visual Novels)
Genre: Angst, Angst and Feels, Break Up, F/M, Light Angst, Teen Angst
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-29
Updated: 2019-04-29
Packaged: 2020-02-09 22:59:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18647842
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlancaPowell/pseuds/BlancaPowell





	Present Imperfect

“Hello, is anyone home?” Chris yells opening the front door. He finally came back home after a month full of playing football and travelling across the states.

His girlfriend Amy must have gone somewhere because the house is empty. He gently puts his suitcase and looks around their little home. Today is the graduation day and Chris feels bittersweet about it. After all, it is here where he met Amy, the love of his life. They created home together in their little apartment, a place that Chris has always looked forward to coming to whenever he was away.

This year has been rather hectic for both of them and Chris is relieved he can finally spend some quality time with his Amy. Text messages, phone calls and skype dates have never been enough and Chris can’t wait to hold his girlfriend in his arms.

He walks into their shared bedroom and unpacks his suitcase. The suit he will wear for this today’s ceremony is laid on the bed. From the suitcase’s little pocket he pulls something else. A small box with a small, yet elegant ring, his grandmother’s.

He looks at it longer than necessary before hiding it in one of the suit pockets. He smiles at the thought of his girlfriend wearing it. Amy is the one, he doesn’t have any doubts about it. They had their ups and downs, especially since Chris was so busy with his football duties and he rarely even was home. He can’t wait to see his girlfriend, to tell her how much he missed her. To tell her he got a job as a coach to one of the local teams in the state so they can settle in one place. To promise her he will never leave her again.

Glancing at the clock, he realizes the ceremony starts soon. Quickly, he types a message to Amy and shortly after he gets a reply, “I’ll meet you there, I’m already with the gang.”

When he arrives, the ceremony has already started so Chris takes a random seat hoping he’d see his girlfriend soon after it ends.

Time passes quickly when you’re with your friends, that’s why for Chris, sitting alone, it felt like ages before the ceremony was finally over.

When people are leacing, Chris spots Zack and waves his hand until his friends notice him too.

“Chris! You’re here! How was the championship?” Tyler asks while Abbie hugs him.

“It was okay,” he answers and looks around. Something is different. “Where’s Amy?” he asks and his friends look at each other, confused.

“She said she was going back to the apartment, she didn’t feel too well,” Abbie answers but Chris feels like they all are hiding something. Whatever it is, he is going to see for himself.

“I’m gonna see her, we’ll be meeting you soon, okay?” Chris rushes home, million thoughts in his head. Why Amy didn’t wait for me? Was something wrong?

“Amy? Babe?” Chris asks, opening the door. The room is dark but he sees his girlfriend standing by the window.

He walks up to her, checking quickly if the ring is still there and it is. He thinks that maybe proposing to her in their own apartment will be a better idea as he knows how much Amy hates being the center of attention.

“Amy?”

Chris wraps his arms around his girlfriend, kissing her neck, feeling the familiar warmth and scent of his beloved woman.

“I missed you so much babe, you have no idea,” he murmurs into her neck and feels her tensing slightly.

“Yeah…I have  _some_  idea,” she answeres quietly and Chris can tell something is definitely wrong.

“Amy?” He spins her around to face her, “is everything alright? Did something happen?”

He studies her face, her makeup smudged on her face, black streams of tears indicating she must have been crying for a while now.

“You were gone for so long Chris,” she blurts finally, choking on her own tears.

“I know, I’m sorry but I promise I’ll never leave you again, I–”

“You said that last time too,” she interrupts him. “I’m tired.”

Chris frowns. “What do you mean?”

“I know you love football and I could never take it away from you. But it was so hard on me, you were gone for most of the year.”

“I know, and I am sorry. I really wish I could have been there for you more often but I couldn’t just–”

“I know you couldn’t!” she snapped suddenly. “I had a lot of time to think,” she added calmly.

“To think about what?” Chris asked, swallowing nervously. This is not going how he has imagined.

“About me. About you, us. The future. I love you Chris but… this is not what I want. I don’t want my boyfriend, husband at some point, to be absent most of the time. Call me selfish but I need him around. But I wouldn’t be able to stop you from doing what you love. That’s why, I think it’s best if we broke up.” Amy waves her hand at Chris who tires to protest. “I hate it too but we won’t be able to make it work. You have so many opportunities now, you should take advantage of it. It is your dream Chris!”

“YOU are my dream!” he yells, his own tears covering his face. How did this happen?

“Chris…” she touches his cheek gently, “I love you enough to let you live however you wish. I just can’t do it. It’s not easy for me, trust me, it’s the hardest thing I have ever done. But I couldn’t live with myself if you gave up on football just because of me.”

Chris swallows his tears, unable to say anything.  _This isn’t happening._   _This is the worst night of my life._

“I already packed my stuff. I’m going to my father’s house tomorrow. I know it seems sudden, but I have spent so much time thinking about this and I’m sure, it’s the right thing to do. I know you Chris. When your heart is into something, you give it 100%. Like it was with presidency. Now with football. I don’t want to be the one keeping you away from this. But please, understand me.”

“I understand,” he nods sadly. What else is he supposed to say? Please, don’t leave me? I beg you, you’re the best thing that happened to me, please stay? No, she wouldn’t want to hear that.

His heart sinks at the thought of the proposal he planned for her. This has never crossed his mind.

“I love you,” she says as she stands on her tiptoes and presses a kiss onto Chris’s forehead. And then she leaves the apartment, she leaves him. Maybe, if he wasn’t so tired and empty, he would have gone after her, argue, anything. But he couldn’t. He hopes at least it’ll make her happy.

The door close and he slides onto the floor, powerless. Tears rolling down his cheeks, his palm still gripping the ring he was supposed to give her.

He still can’t process what happened that night. How everything turned from the best night of his life to nightmare.

He tries to breathe slowly, but each breath is too painful and he pants loudly, still sobbing. Holding onto the ring that keeps a promise.

_Maybe…maybe some day, our paths will cross again._


End file.
